After the War: Ron and Hermione
by leisurexx
Summary: The war is over, and Voldemort is dead. Ron and Hermione adjusts to their new life with each other. (Romione forever) Updated (7/13/14) Rated M for later chapters. CHAPTER 5 IS NOW UP!
1. Chapter 1

**Hey everyone! If you don't already know, I'm a HUGE Romione shipper. I'm currently writing another story about them, but I'm having a bit of a writer's block, so I decided to just think up a new one, and rest my brain until I get more ideas for the other one. Please enjoy, this takes place after the war. This contains books and movies details.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Harry Potter series.

Hermione wandered around the castle with a sense of security. "It's over," she thought, "Voldemort is dead." All the worry that was within her had vanished over the course of the hour, and she felt, for once, safe. She looked around with relief upon her face when she saw not even the slightest bit of student bodies on the floor. The number of student's deaths were decreasing, whereas, she felt no guilt whatsoever when she saw numerous bodies of the Death Eaters. She of course, felt a teaspoon of pity. She understood that many wizards and witches were forced to be on Voldemort's side due to their fear. "No," she thought, "That is no excuse for them; they still set out to kill innocent people, there is no forgiveness in that." She sighed. She then immediately forgot what she was thinking about when she saw the people in the portraits on the walls nodding in approvable as she walked past. Some even bowed down. Hermione could hear some of them whisper to each other,

"That girl right there, she is said to be the brightest witch of this age!"

"Ah," the other responded, "Another Lily Potter of course!"

Hermione's face reddened, she had never been compared to Harry's mother, but she knew that it was a compliment, seeming as though she had heard Harry's mother was particularly bright. She was also part of the Slug Club! Hermione smiled as she continued forth. She saw all the shattered glass and the broken bricks on the floor. Huge parts of the castle were destroyed. As her eyes scoured the castle, it caught the glim of a shine. She walked on over and picked it up. It was a broken part of a mirror. She looked into it as she saw a small vacated room. Her fingers closed around it as she remembered it to be the mirror Harry had kept near his ankle. She sighed happily. She silently thanked Aberforth for sending Dobby, who had risked and cost his life for the three. She wiped a single tear that filled up on her left eye. She put the mirror in her pocket. She gave up on looking for something salvageable. "What a mess!" she thought; she'd hate to be the person to clean this all up. She then laughed to herself, "We can just use magic!" Her moment of laughter faded when she thought about what had occurred the past few days. All of the heart-wrenching memories she remembered, like how they had almost gotten killed in Malfoy Manor, how she was cornered by the insane Bellatrix Lestrange. She shuddered at the sight of the horrendous scar on her arm. It still ached with pain. However, the pain wasn't nearly as bad as her remembrance of it. She continued to ponder, because that wasn't all that raced through her mind. She still remembered the look on Harry's face when he told her he was going to the Forbidden Forest. She couldn't contain her tears. She had always kept in the back of her mind an assumption that Harry was a horcrux, but for once hoped that she was wrong. She thought she was just being completely mental. She couldn't bear to lose her best friend, and when she saw him, at his "death" in Hagrid's arms, she wanted nothing more but to find Ron, and collapse in his arms. "Ron!" she gasped to herself, "I completely forgot." She blushed; despite all the horrors that went on during the battle, the one thing- one person that kept her going was Ron. Ron, the boy she had fancied since second year, with his gorgeous blue eyes, and his glowing red hair. She never had the courage to actually go up to him and confess her feelings. She was far too nervous and she always hoped that Ron would make the first move. It was different today, when he showed concern for the house elves; she couldn't hold her feelings in anymore. Hermione closed her eyes and replayed the kiss in her head. She had the urge to find him, just to feel his soft lips against hers once more. She wanted Ron to hold her, tight as he can, so they wouldn't ever be apart. She couldn't imagine a life with magic, without him. What is she saying? Magic has been her whole life, and now a boy has come in and taken over her thoughts. She shook her head, "Not just my thoughts," she thought to herself, "Ron Weasley has my heart." She debated in her head whether or not she should be the first one to say that she loves him. Her thoughts came to an end when she heard a sudden movement. She turned around and froze as she saw a Death Eater standing a foot away from her. She silently gasped, and slowly reached for Bellatrix Lestranges's wand. Before she could grasp it, he stopped her.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you." He growled while raising his wand. His eyes followed her every hand movement, her coordination. Hermione quickly examined the man who was a second away from potentially killing her. His head was bleeding severely, and his leg looked broken, she had no idea how he could possibly be standing. "Drop it on the floor." He commanded.

Hermione stood still with her hands to her sides, breathing intensely.

"Now!" he shouted. Hermione jumped, with her hands shaking, she grabbed the wand and tossed it beside the Death Eater.

"Th- that's Bellatrix's wand," he stuttered while eyeing the wand. His mind then began to process on how Hermione could have gotten her wand. He widened his eyes once he figured it out. "Y-YOU KILLED HER!" he screamed stepping closer to her, with his wand directly pointing to her heart.

"N-no!" she replied with her voice failing her. "I didn't!" she squeaked.

"You're one of Potter's friends, yeah, that's you, ain't it? You're the mudblood who helped him defeat the Dark Lord?"

Hermione whimpered and whispered, "I didn't kill her."

"SHUT IT!" he snarled. He took a deep breath and said, "Imagine it mudblood, me, killing Harry Potter's girlfriend, what an honor. I'll be recognized by all of the Dark Lord's followers, I'll be- I'll be remembered. AVADA-"

"STUPEFY!"

The Death Eater's body was flown backwards against the brick wall of Hogwarts. The force of the spell knocked him out, leaving him unconscious on the floor. His wand flew to the other side of the corridor. Hermione had held her breath, and then finally gasped for air. She thought to herself, "I know that voice." She turned around to see a tall, red haired boy holding his wand out, pointing it to the Death Eater, in case he sprang back up to fire any shots.

"Ron." Hermione whispered softly. He took his eyes off the Death Eater and stared into hers. His face filled with concern, 

"Mione," he whispered back.

Not wasting a second, she ran and leaped into his arms. Ron caught her and grasped hold of her tight. He swung her around a bit before setting her down. His nose caught the scent of her hair, even going through a war, her hair smelled lovely. He closed his eyes and hugged her tightly once more before letting her go.

"Ron," she said breathlessly. She avoided his contact, and she stared at the cracks of the floor. "I almost di-"

"Don't! Don't say that, you didn't. Why did you go off wandering on your own? Blimey Hermione, don't do that again!" he snapped. Hermione could tell the anger in his tone, but she knew it was only because he was worried.

"I just, I wanted to take a look around." She whispered.

"Please, next time, ask me to come along." He pleaded. His voice had broken. He placed his finger on her chin and lifted it up, praying he could see her eyes.

Hermione looked up to see his beautiful blue eyes staring straight at hers. She could hear the pain in his voice and see the sparkle from his tears. She nodded, "Okay, I'm sorry," she made out with her lip quivering uncontrollably.

"Don't be sorry." He said grabbing her for another hug. "I just can't lose you."

Her heart had swallowed up rather than skipping a beat. She understood why Ron had said that, he had just lost Fred, and Hermione was being daft and wandering the castle. Of course Ron was worried; he didn't have it in him to lose anyone else. She wrapped her arms around his body and pressed her ear against his chest. She could hear his heartbeat; it was slow, beating with time. The warmth of his body against her seemed to help her regain her strength and joy. She felt secure, and comfortable. Ron pulled away and held her hands "Are you okay?"

She nodded, "Thank you."

"For what?"

"For saving my life!"

"Don't thank me; you've saved me loads of times." He said while giving a faint grin. Hermione smiled warmly, then looked at Ron and examined his face. He had dirt on his nose and she couldn't help but smile at the memory.

"What?" Ron asked, noticing her smirk.

"Y-you've got something." She said pointing at her own nose.

"Huh?" Ron asked, confused.

"You've got dirt." She chuckled.

Ron wiped his nose off and paused for a second. He laughed along, realizing what just happened. Hermione intertwined her fingers with his, and said, "Come on, we don't want a whole search party out for us, do we?"

Ron shook his head, "Hang on, we can't just leave him here."

"Huh?"

He let go of her hand and walked towards the Death Eater, he pointed his wand at him. Hermione had completely forgotten that a few minutes ago she almost died at the hands of a Death Eater.

"Obliviate." Ron spoke. White streaks flickered out of his wand onto the Death Eater. Ron sighed happily, knowing he had done it correctly. He glanced over at Hermione and saw her facial expression, which was her impressed face. He then walked over to pick up the man's wand and pocketed it. He turned around and smiled. "Alright, let's go." He walked beside her and they proceeded walking down the corridor. Slowly, their hands met. Hermione's face flushed with red while Ron's ears turned maroon. They walked for about 3 minutes without saying a word to each other. Their steps clattered the floor creating a faint echo.

"Can you believe it?" Hermione said, breaking the silence.

"Believe what?"

"There's nothing to be afraid of anymore, we're all going to be okay." She replied softly.

Ron looked at her and nodded. He squeezed her hand tighter and rubbed it with his thumb. "We were always safe, we had Harry, the Order- hell we even had the bloody decorative stone knights for the castle on our side."

Hermione laughed, "Hogwarts really is our home, isn't it?"

"Met my two best friends here, it means the world to me." He said as he let go of her hand. He spread his arms out wide and gestured to the practically destroyed castle.  
Hermione smirked; she grabbed his arm and placed her head on his shoulder. "I never want to leave." She whispered. Ron tensed up, but made sure to not make it obvious so Hermione wouldn't stop what she was doing.

"Hermione?" Ron asked.

She closed her eyes and replied, "Mhm?"

"Are you coming back to finish your last year?"

She stopped and looked at him curiously. "Yeah, most likely, why?"

"Because, I wouldn't want to be stuck at home for an entire year while you're here, it'd be boring not having you yell at me for eating every ounce of food there is. Still, anywhere you go, I go." he said as he continued to walk.

Hermione beamed, "So that means-"

He turned around. "It means," he interrupted while faking his disappointed sigh, "You'll be helping me with a lot of _studying_ for the N.E.W.T.s."

Hermione pounced on Ron yet again, and this time, he wasn't prepared. They fell over as she landed on top of him. Ron groaned as he hit the concrete floor. Hermione gasped, "I'm so sorry Ron! Are you alright?" Ron began to shake. Hermione apologized over and over again. She paused; she saw that Ron wasn't shaking from the pain, but from laughter. "Ronald!" she huffed. Ron burst out in laughter as Hermione rolled over to his side and lay on the ground beside him.

"Hush Ron!" she ordered. She was relieved he was not hurt, but embarrassed that he was laughing at her.

Ron covered his face and continued to laugh; he covered his face and said a couple of scattered words. "You- jump- apologized-hilarious!"

"What?" she asked, pursing her lips. "You're not making any sense!"

He then took a breather and settled down. He then moved to lie on his side, facing Hermione. "He moved a strand of hair away from her face and said, "I'll be wherever you are, and you can't get rid of me that easily."

Hermione bit her lip, "I wouldn't ever want to get rid of you."

Ron beamed as he leaned in. Hermione shut her eyes, waiting for the magic to begin. Ron slowly moved closer until his lips touched hers. Ron kissed her with such eagerness, their lips locked together in harmony. Her lips were smooth, soft, and it made Ron feel lightheaded. He slowly brought his hands to her face and he lightly stroked her cheekbone with his thumb. Hermione kissed Ron back passionately, excited that their second kiss didn't come along seven years after. Their soft kiss eventually turned into a kiss with such intensity. Ron took full control, without any hesitation. With such happiness, he kissed her hard. Their air was limited and they broke apart with their foreheads against each other, and their noses touching. Both gasped for air, and gave out some harsh breaths. Ron gave a half smile. He waited to catch his breath and then he got up off the floor. He gave his hand to her, palm faced side up, and she took it.

"To the Great Hall?" he asked with a smile slapped on his face.

"To the Great Hall." She agreed. Together they walked back to reality.

**** I hope you guys enjoyed the first chapter!  
**


	2. Chapter 2

Hermione and Ron walked hand and hand throughout the corridor to reach the Great Hall. Their fingers were locked and intertwined, hoping the other would never release their tightened grip. Ron stroked her hand with his thumb. She looked up to see his Caribbean blue eyes glowing upon him. She smiled, and Ron could feel his heart jumping around. He gazed upon her beauty, her gorgeous brown hair tied up into a messy bun, her glimmering brown eyes staring back into his, and her chapped lips were astonishingly beautiful. Even after the torture of war, she looked extravagant. "Why are you staring at me like that?" she blushed, breaking his concentrated stare on her.

Ron bit his lip and gave her a half smile. "You're breathtaking." He chuckled and looked to the ceiling. "I'm happy to be here with you."

Hermione blushed, "So am I, Ronald." They continued to walk, and Ron could not believe his luck. He was holding hands with Hermione Granger. Him! He was the luckiest bloke in the entire wizarding world. His feelings for Hermione were obvious to everyone, including Harry, but it wasn't for him until the Yule Ball. "I can't believe I didn't reveal my true feelings in 4th year, I must've been barking mad." He thought to himself. "I'm mad for her; I just couldn't pluck up the courage to ask her." He chuckled, "That's exactly what Hermione said to me after the Yule Ball, isn't it?"

Hermione looked up to see Ron with his broody face look. She loved it, it was extremely attractive. Everything about Ron was attractive, but this look drove her insane. He only put it on whenever he was in a deep thought, focusing on something that mattered to him. It happened rarely, seeming as though he never put the look on during the school year. "What're you thinking about?" she said as she swung their hands.

Ron snapped out of his trance, "What? Oh, it's nothing." He flashed her a toothy grin, which set off the butterflies in her stomach. Ron's eyes traced her jaw line as he saw cuts and bruises. He lifted up his free hand and brushed his finger against it. Hermione cringed in pain for a second but quickly put on her brave face, hoping she hadn't worried Ron. "Does it hurt a lot?" he asked.

"No, it's not bad, it's a little cut, I'm just being a baby."

"Come off it! You're allowed to feel pain and express it Hermione! We just went through a bloody war; we've earned ourselves the right to complain, right?" He reassured her.

Hermione beamed, she loved that Ron was concerned; it just reconfirmed her of his feelings about her. "Right, we'll have Madam Pompfrey treat it once we get to the Great Hall."

"No way, I'll do it." Ron contradicted.

Hermione tightened her grip on his hand, "That's fine with me."

***

The pair finally reached the Great Hall, and when they appeared under the doorway, Seamus and Dean cupped their hands around their mouths and cheered and whooped. It echoed throughout the Hall. "Blimey! It's about time!" Seamus shouted, and everyone in the Great Hall reverted their eyes to Ron and Hermione. Hermione blushed and hid her face in Ron's neck as Ron gave a goofy smile to everyone. His eyes caught Harry's, who nodded. He knew what he was thinking. His nod simply meant, "You better take care of her." Ron mouthed, "I will." The hall suddenly began to clap and cheer for the two of them. Ron slowly walked towards his family, bringing Hermione along as they hung onto each other with a tight grasp. The cheering began to die down and everyone went back to their business. Mrs. Weasley shrieked with joy as they approached her. Ron covered his ears,

"Bloody hell Mum!" he whined.

Hermione smacked his chest, "No swearing, Ronald!"

Mrs. Weasley smiled while watching Hermione scold her son. She always knew since second year Ron would end up falling in love with Hermione, and Hermione falling for him as well. She even made a bet with her husband, ten galleons it was! She wanted it to hurry it up. Finally her wish for Ron's happiness had come. "Welcome to the family, dear." Mrs. Weasley said as she hugged Hermione.

"Actually Mrs. Weasley, I feel like I've been a part of it for a long time." She replied beaming.

Mr. Weasley came up behind Ron and whispered, "Best of luck to the both of you." Ron turned around, facing his father.

"Thanks dad, it means a lot." The next thing his father did surprised him, he drew him in for a hug. Mr. Weasley held him firmly, whilst patting his back. Ron never in a hundred years expected his father to be this emotional with him. He wasn't very good at being affectionate towards his children, only towards his mother. Maybe that's where Ron got his personality from. He was known to lodge his feelings inside, and it must've come from his father because his mother was very open. He knew why Mr. Weasley had hugged him; it was his way of mourning the loss of Fred.

"I haven't been a very good father…" Mr. Weasley choked.

"Dad, don't say that! You have and will always be the number one dad." Ron cut in. Mr. Weasley's face then suddenly began to cover with tears. The family paused as they watched Ron pat Mr. Weasley's back this time. They knew it was their moment. "Fred knew it too dad, you always were there for him, and he loved you. Don't think otherwise for a second."

Mr. Weasley wiped his tears, "Thank you son." He sniffled then looked up to the rest of his red haired clan. "Well? What're you guys waiting for; give your old man a hug." Their flaming red hairs began to form one by one into a fire-y spark. Mrs. Weasley gestured to Harry and Hermione to join in. After a few seconds, the hug parted, and Mr. Weasley spoke up once more. "Molly, I suppose I owe you 10 galleons when we get back home, eh?" He chuckled and grabbed her for another hug.

"What, 10 galleons for what?" Ron asked.

"Oh, it's nothing dear-"

"They bet that you and Hermione would eventually get together." George said as he laughed.

"George!" Mrs. Weasley snapped.

"Mum! Dad! You didn't!" Ron asked while his mouth gaped open.

Mr and Mrs. Weasley's cheeks flushed red. "Well, we'll leave you two to your privacy." They quickly scurried off.

"Hang on!" Ron called after them, but Hermione interrupted. "Honestly Ronald! It's not a big deal, it's quite flattering really."

Ron gave up and sighed happily, "I guess you're right Hermione." Hermione smirked; she loved when Ron told her she was right. Whenever Ron complimented her, she could always feel the hotness in her cheeks. She was always the brainiest of the group, and in their 1st year, Ron highly despised it. However, gradually he had begun to admire her intelligence, and she knew it. Ron stared into her eyes, and he imagined her beautiful brown eyes to be pools of deep, rich, brown chocolate. He reached down and with one of his hands, he gently grabbed hers. With his other free hand, he placed it on her waist, and slowly brought it up to her cheek, softly nuzzling it with his thumb. From that point, Hermione felt the tingles on the tip of her fingers. Her arm grew with goose bumps. Ron became hesitant, but continued to lean in. He licked his lips with eagerness, hoping to taste Hermione's sweet lips once more. Hermione mentally prepared herself for what Ron was doing next.

"It's okay, you've been through this before, just relax!" She shut her eyes, her heart began to beat, and the rest of the hall had silenced in her mind. The moment was interrupted by none other than Ron himself. "OI!" he shouted. Hermione jumped at the sudden and quite loud tone of voice Ron was giving out. Hermione opened her eyes to see Ron glaring across the room. She turned around, and saw the reason for Ron's anger. Harry and Ginny were engaged in a passionate kiss. It was clear to her that they couldn't give a damn where they were doing it, and proceeded on. Ron softly moved Hermione out of the way and walked towards Harry and Ginny. "Knock it off!"

"Ronald, calm down!" Hermione said chasing after him. Ron approached Ginny and growled,

"Do you have to snog my best mate in front of the whole school?" he snarled.

Harry gulped, his mouth had become dry. He looked to Hermione, and using his eyes, he begged for assistance. Hermione mouthed, "Just don't talk!" He nodded and swallowed his tongue.

"Well would you rather us snog alone, in my room?" Ginny asked.

Ron's ears turned scarlet. "What I'd really like is for you to not snog!"

"Don't make me laugh! I've been wanting to for ages, and you're going to have me stop just cause you don't like it?" Ginny snapped.

"S-she's got a point." Harry piped up.

Ron glared at him and Harry mumbled, "Sorry."

Ginny smacked Harry's shoulder, "You have nothing to be sorry about! The boy who lived, scared of my brother?"

"I'm not scared!" Harry protested. "He's my best mate, and your brother!"

"Exactly, so don't snog in the bloody Hall!" Ron yelled.

"Ron, come on, let's go." Hermione sighed.

Ron growled for one last time at the two of them and pointed, "Don't snog!" he grabbed Hermione's hand and led her out to the corridors. He huffed while making loud, thumping footsteps. He stopped and leaned against the brick wall, and slid down to the concrete ground. He groaned, and Hermione sat down beside him.

"Don't let it bother you Ron, let's take into fact that Ginny was worried sick for Harry. She loves him!"

"She wasn't worried sick for me." He mumbled.

She threw her arms around his neck and cuddled close to him. Ron shocked, put his arms around Hermione too, and saw her eyes filling with tears as she broke it apart. "I was."

"You were? Why?" Ron asked softly.

"You're my best friend, and of course, I knew you and Harry could handle yourselves, but the thought of losing you, it breaks my heart." Ron frowned, he hated seeing Hermione cry, and it always put him in a bad mood.

"Shh, Hermione, stop it. I'm fine, see? I'm like brand new, well almost!" he laughed while pointing to the bruises and scars around his face and arms.

Hermione gave a quick laugh, and then leaned onto Ron. She placed her face into his neck, while Ron rested his chin gently on top of her head. "We're safe, you, me, and Harry. I always knew we would be." Ron quietly whispered. Hermione breathed deeply and inhaled the scent of Ron. Even through thick and thin, Ron managed to smell his best. She chuckled to herself. Ron began to stroke her hair and for about a minute, they were in peace. Ron's ears perked up when he heard faint sobs coming from the end of the corridor. "Hermione?" he whispered.

"Mhm?"

"Do you hear that?"

She opened her eyes and sighed happily. "Your heartbeat?" she thought. "Yeah I can hear it." She shook her head, "No, what is it?" she replied.

"A cry, I heard it." He slowly got up, and helped Hermione by holding her hand. Hermione and Ron fell silent as they heard quick takes of breath, and sniffles. Ron held onto Hermione's hand as they walked to the end of the corridor. As their steps echoed, the cries grew faint. Beginning to turn a corner, Hermione pointed at a shoe appearing.

"That's Pavarti's, I can notice the emerald shoes anywhere." She whispered. Ron made sure Pavarti saw him in the corner of her eye before kneeling down next to her. He didn't want to frighten her any more than she already was. He knew the cause of her cries, Lavender.

"You alright?" he asked softly. He felt the need to console her.

"No, and I don't need you pitying me!" she shouted. Ron jumped at the tone of her voice.

"Don't yell at him! He just wanted to know how you were!" Hermione said angrily.

"No it's okay Mione, I understand." Ron interrupted.

Hermione stood there confused on why Ron was taking the rudeness from Pavarti. He leaned against the wall beside her and sighed. "You ever feel incredibly idiotic when you do something you know you shouldn't have done in the first place?" Pavarti raised her eyebrow. "I know, I was awful to her sixth year, and I'm sorry. I never expected myself to be an ass. I was a coward."

Hermione raised her eyebrows. Ron was being incredibly sensitive towards Pavarti, and he even understood why she snapped at him, whereas she herself had no clue! She gave a quick smirk.

Pavarti sniffled, "She really liked you."

He smiled, "She wasn't bad herself, anyway, why you crying? She's alive!"

"She got bit Ron! It could change her." She cried.

"No she won't. I'm not very bright into how werewolves work, but Hermione is, aren't you?"

"He's right, she won't change. Her body will however, she'll be like Professor Lupin, as long as she takes the wolfsbane potion, she'll be herself all the time!" Hermione reassured.

"See? Hermione's the brightest witch of this age, y'know? Listen to her!" he looked up smiling at her. She blushed.

"What if she forgets to take it?" Pavarti asked worriedly.

"Well then, we must do our best to remind her." Ron replied.

Pavarti looked at Ron and smiled; she threw her arms around him and said, "Thanks Ron." Hermione felt a twinge of jealousy jolting through her veins. She bit her lip watching Pavarti hugging _her _Ron, but decided to let it go. The two of them stood up and Pavarti wiped her tears. "I better go check up on her, see how she is."

"We'll come in a bit." Hermione added. Ron and Pavarti turned around and gave Hermione a shocked expression.

"You will?"

"We will?" Ron asked.

Hermione nodded, "Of course, we'll see you there."

Pavarti happily ran to the hospital wing, leaving Ron speechless at Hermione's sweet gesture. He slowly walked towards her and asked, "You sure about that? You won't have any problems of some sort?"

"Ronald, I'll be fine." She replied.

"You're amazing you are." He flashed his smile. "After all I did, you still want to go."

Hermione blushed, she wrapped her arms around Ron's neck and asked, "So, where were we?"

Ron did his famous half smile and bit his lip. "Is this where?" he leaned in and locked lips with Hermione. The warmth of her kiss filled him. Hermione showed a slow smile appearing on her face while kissing Ron back. Hermione's hands rose up to his head and her fingers ran through Ron's soft red hair, tugging at it a slight bit. Ron bit Hermione's lip in which she whimpered slightly. Ron raised his eyebrows in delight and gave a final kiss. He gestured his face to look up, and Hermione saw a flock of birds forming into a heart. Hermione chuckled into Ron's neck.

"You are so corny!" she said smacking his chest. "You didn't even say a spell!" she said in shock.

"I didn't have too." Ron whispered. She grabbed the back of his head and once again crashed her lips into his.


	3. Chapter 3

It's been a week since the war had ended, and the state of things were slowly restoring back to normal. Of course, the traumatic events that took place during the timeframe of the war had always popped up in everyone's minds, especially Hermione's. Every morning she woke up screaming over the memory of Bellatrix torturing her. The weight of the death eater on top of her was something she felt every night when she tossed and turned in bed. How she could feel the greasy curls of Bellatrix's hair fall upon her face as she carved into her with a knife. Her scar ached with pain during the night, but also had an uneasy feeling to it. It itched, forcing her to scratch at it. It bled, staining her clothes. The horrific event haunted her dreams, causing her to wake up the next day with tears rolling down her cheeks. Before Hermione went to sleep, she always put up a silencing charm around the room and on herself. She shared a room with Ginny and she didn't want to be any more of a burden than she already was. She felt like she was intruding in her life, she had moved into the Burrow for the time being because she was still searching for her parents. Her parents' whereabouts worried her, she knew she had to take their memories for the sake of their lives, but now she needed them more than ever. She wanted to be daddy's little girl and be protected. She needed her mother to tuck her in at night and read her some fairy tales, Cinderella, Snow White, Goldilocks and the Three Bears. It wasn't that she didn't enjoy the stories from the Tales of the Beedle and the Bard but it wasn't something she was used too. Well, only when Ron read it to her. The silver lining in her life, Ron, kept her at peace. Whenever she woke up screaming she headed straight for the living room, with Ron waiting for her, she never knew how he could be there at the correct time. Ron was amazing, truly brilliant and the boy for her. Opposites they were, any daft person could see that, but they were perfect for each other. The attraction between them pulled them together and being in Ron's arms were the safest place she could ever be in. Hermione got up and neatly made her bed. She sighed happily flattening out the sheets of her bed. She glanced over to see Ginny snoring loudly, sleeping like a rock. She smiled; she knew she wasn't the only one who couldn't sleep at nights. Ginny mumbled in her sleep, fussing around. She mostly mumbled over Harry, all her worries poured out at night, and Hermione couldn't blame her. If she was left behind to worry about Ron and Harry looking for horcruxes, she would have been an absolute mess. Hermione tiptoed to the door and shut it quietly as she left the room. She walked down the stairway quietly also, since the time was 6 am sharp. She knew the Weasleys wouldn't be up this early, considering they were all still in their depressive state. Mrs. Weasley was a mess, but she did her best to hide it. Hermione could always see the tears that dried up on her cheeks, how her makeup was in ruins every time someone mentioned Fred. She no longer woke up early; she woke up the same time as her children. Hermione figured it'd to be the best solution at the time being, Mrs. Weasley deserved her peace and rest. Hermione sighed at how destructive their world had become because of Voldemort. He was gone now, and that was all that mattered. She returned to her normal state and went to start on breakfast. She took the eggs out of the fridge and with a flick of her wand; the eggs cracked open onto the pan and began scrambling themselves. She smiled, she couldn't understand a world without magic, and even the simplest things wouldn't feel complete without her grasp around her wand. Hermione's thought broke as she heard footsteps descending down the stairway.

"Mione?" a groggy voice piped up.

Hermione's smile formed as she saw Ron. Ron's hair was an absolute mess, his fire red locks growing longer each day. He was wearing his Chudley Cannon boxers, and a white stripped with green tank top. Ron was growing more and more each day, and it seemed that the tank top was a bit tight on him. She didn't mind, she could see the outlines of Ron's six-pack through it. Even in the morning Ron was extremely attractive. Ron put his hand under his tank top to scratch at his stomach, and Hermione caught the glimpse of his muscular body. She blushed, thankful Ron didn't catch her due to his grogginess and tired eyes.

"Yeah Ron, it's me." Hermione replied.

"Thought I heard some noise, I figured it'd be you. Why are you up so early?" he asked.

"Was a bit hungry, why are you awake so early?" she questioned.

"Same reason you are, I was hungry." He smiled as he rubbed his eyes.

Hermione giggled and thought to herself. "Of course he would get up at this time to eat!" Ron walked over to Hermione and with his eyes still shut; he inhaled the scent of the kitchen.

"That smells good, what is it?"

"It's just eggs, you want some?"

"If it's your cooking, definitely." His eyes finally opened and his bright blue eyes took Hermione's breath away. Her morning lit up seeing her boyfriend's eyes completing his handsome face. Ron felt the same way with Hermione. He looked her up and down in a subtle way without her noticing, and put on his half smile. She looked ravishing; she was absolutely stunning even when she was in her pajamas. Her messy bun contributed to her beautiful physique. Her cheeks looked rosy red, and her lips looked slight pink. Ron craved the taste of her lips, he wanted to lean in and surprise her with a soft but meaningful kiss. He however didn't want to ruin kissing for the both of them entirely; since he hadn't brushed his teeth his breath was probably horrid. He decided to compliment her instead.

"You look nice." Ron kicked himself in his head, "You look nice?" he thought, "That's the best you can come up with? Idiot."

Hermione however took the compliment happily. She blushed and pulled her sleeves down so her fists could clench the ends, with her fingernails digging into the fabric. "Thanks Ronald, you look nice yourself."

Ron smiled; he then pulled out a chair and gestured for her to sit down. "I'll make some toast, you relax."

Hermione giggled, "Alright." She took a seat and watched Ron slightly burn his toast, but perfect Hermione's. Being the gentleman he was, he finished off the scrambled eggs and gave Hermione the most on her plate. He sat down beside her and gobbled down his two burnt toast and small portion of his scrambled eggs. Hermione being the polite girl she is ate with such etiquette. Ron then grabbed his wand from his pocket and with a swish; two cups came out of the cupboards and filled up with pumpkin juice for the pair of them. Hermione thanked Ron and took a sip, whereas Ron chugged it down.

"Slow down Ron! Honestly! Do you want to choke? I mean our efforts to defeat Voldemort wouldn't be any use to us if you died from a piece of toast lodged in your throat." Hermione snapped.

Ron laughed; he couldn't believe how demanding and worried Hermione could be. She complained over him eating too fast, which wasn't even the worst thing he could possibly do for the day. "Alright, no need to slow down now since I'm finished. Go on and eat!" Ron watched as Hermione took small bites of her food, her cheeks becoming red as she felt her stomach turn with Ron watching her every move. She found it comforting but also nerve wrecking.

"So, how'd you sleep Hermione?" He asked with a stifled yawn.

Hermione stopped her movements. She slowly put her fork down and replied with a hushed tone, "Not well, I- I dreamt about- never mind." She took a sip of her juice. She didn't want Ron to think that she wasn't brave, having to relive her stay at the Manor due to her dreams.

"No, don't do that. You can't just say something then end it. Tell me, what'd you dream about?" Ron asked.

"I-I dreamt of her."

"Dreamt of who?" Ron asked.

"Bellatrix, I dreamt of Bellatrix torturing me Ron, that day at Malfoy Manor."

Ron's face dropped and his hand then moved over to cover Hermione's. Hermione looked up to see Ron's sympathetic look. She continued.

"I've been having the same dream every night. I've been trying to look up a spell in the books to see if I can prevent these dreams from occurring but no luck so far. It's destroying me Ron, I keep seeing the day when she carved mudblood into my arm. It's been aching Ron. Now I know how Harry feels like with his scar. All those years I thought his scar burn was just a small little burden, but now I see. Of course, his must've been ten times worse. This feeling has been a complete torture!"

"Have you put any dittany on it?" he asked concerned.

"That sort of thing won't work for me anymore, it's not like where it needs to be treated, it's just- the pain is there! It's kind of like when I heard on the news about muggles returning from war with their amputations, they call it phantom pains. "

"Phantom pains? What's that?" Ron questioned.

"It's when you feel pain from a body part that's no longer there."

"And that's happening to you?"

Hermione smiled, "Minus the loss of a limb."

Ron frowned, he wanted to do anything to help her, but this seemed beyond his reach. "Why haven't you mentioned anything up until now?"

"How do you know that this just wasn't the first dream?" she said with a raised eyebrow.

"Because, that look on your face tells me you're really bothered by this, and you rarely make that face for something if it wasn't important. Blimey, I've been with you for over seven years now, you don't think I know you?" He said as he pointed at her. Hermione's lip trembled, she was touched at how Ron completely figured her out, he knew her, more than anyone ever could. She bit her lip to prevent any tears from forming. Ron observed Hermione's face, and took quick action. He got up from his seat and opened his arms out wide. "Come here." Hermione slowly rose from her seat and made her way to Ron's arms. Ron held her tightly, kissing the side of her head. He sniffed in her scent, happy to be holding his girlfriend. He whispered in her ear, "It's going to be alright, from now on, you can sleep in my room, that way whenever you're scared you'll have me as close as possible." Hermione then lost it and she cried into Ron's chest, she couldn't believe how compassionate and sensitive Ron was being to her. Her muffled replies were hard to hear, due to the mixtures of her crying involved.

"I –_sob_- would love to – _sob_ – but – _sob _"she cried.

"Whoa Hermione, take a breath, relax- then talk."

Hermione did as she was told and took a long breath and then exhaled. She settled down and grabbed onto Ron's tank top. Ron rubbed Hermione's arm and kissed her forehead softly. He looked down into her eyes, "Now, you were saying?"

She smiled, "But, what about your mother? What will she think?"

"Don't worry about that." Ron reassured, "I'll ask her politely, I'm sure she'll understand. I'll handle it." Hermione buried her face again in Ron's chest,

"You're so good to me." Hermione whispered as she tightened her grip on Ron's tank top. Hermione then whispered the three words she was not expecting to say. "I love you." Hermione's eyes widened, "Oh my goodness, what did I just say!" She didn't dare part from Ron's chest; she didn't want to see Ron reaction, he was probably freaking out from her words. It had only been a week since they had gotten together and now she was confessing her love to him! She was sure she was scaring him off already.

Ron's eyes widened, "Did she just- did she just say she loves me?" he thought to himself. Ron's mouth opened, but he couldn't figure out what to say. The words in his brain began to jumble up and nothing came out. He knew how he felt for Hermione, whenever he was around her his heart filled with glee but he was never the one who had a way with words, it had always been his older brother Bill. Despite all the cowardly attempts to reveal his feelings for Hermione, he wasn't ready to proclaim his love just yet. He prayed for a distraction, an interruption for this conversation. "Please, someone up there, Dumbledore, you gave me the Deluminator, how about helping out? Or Snape, c'mon you were a git to me for 7 bloody years, help me out!" Just then Ron heard some creaky wooden steps being stepped on. An interruption saved his life. Hermione and Ron broke apart quickly and the two saw Ginny appearing before them.

She yawned then immediately stopped, with her hands in the free air, staring at Ron and Hermione. Her eyeballs switched from Ron to Hermione, like she was watching a Quidditch game. "What are you guys up to?" she asked as she pointed at the two.

"Nothing!" Ron and Hermione said simultaneously.

"Uh huh, whatever floats your boat. Everyone's starting to wake up, finish up your love fest." Ginny murmured.

"Yeah, er- I have to wash up anyway. I'll see you two later." Ron hurried up the stairway, avoiding Hermione's eye contact. He rushed into the bathroom and shut the door quickly behind him. He leaned against it and slid down to the cold tile floor. "You're barking mad you are, you stupid arse." He cursed himself, muttering under his breath. He got up from the floor and walked over to the sink, turning on the frigid water. He cupped his hands into a bowl and splashed it onto his face, hoping to bring himself back to reality. Ron's shocked face eventually turned into a giddy schoolboy smile. "She loves me." He whispered to himself. He grabbed his toothbrush happily and began brushing his teeth with such intensity. "I love you too, Hermione." He thought to himself.

Hermione's face turned white as she heard Ron enter the bathroom with the door slamming behind him. "What happened to you guys?" Ginny asked.

"Oh, uh nothing- I should go change, I'll meet you down here later."

"Alright, see you." Ginny yawned, sitting down on the table.

Hermione quickly went up the staircase and dashed into her room. She locked the door and fell onto her bed. "Great job Hermione, for the brightest witch of this age, you weren't particularly showing it before!" she grabbed the pillow and covered her face. She softly screamed into it, and then threw it across the room. "What if I freaked him out? Oh no, I said it too early. Of course he doesn't love me! Who would love this?" she dropped her arms against the bed and sighed. "This is going to be an unfortunate day I suppose. I guess I'll do my best in avoiding him today."

****Hope you enjoyed it! Let's get some reviews on this story my lovely readers.**


	4. Chapter 4

Ron woke up in his bed upon hearing a ruckus downstairs. He rubbed his eyes then looked over at the time. "It's ten? Blimey, I've been asleep for 4 hours?" He then suddenly remembered what had happened earlier that day. He mumbled happily to himself, "Hermione." He got up and shook his head vigorously to awake from his long nap. He placed his hand over his mouth and took a quick exhalation of breath, checking if it smelled disgusting. He wanted to make sure, just in case he happen to have the privilege of kissing Hermione. He was good to go, he then headed downstairs. As he walked down the stairs he heard music, growing louder and louder as he got closer to the ground level. When he reached the last step, he saw his family dancing. Harry and Ginny dancing happily in the corner, George attempting to grab Percy into a dance, and Percy eventually giving in, and he saw his mum and dad slow dancing in the middle. His eyes reverted to Hermione, seeing her sitting on the couch, clapping and laughing to herself. Ron cleared his throat loud enough for everyone to hear. The group stopped and beamed at Ron.

"About time you joined us sleeping beauty!" George laughed. Everyone chuckled.

"Yeah, way to sleep for a long time mate, come on." Harry said smiling as he held Ginny's waist.

"Dear, do you want to eat breakfast-" Mrs. Weasley asked sweetly.

"More like lunch." George whispered in a not so quiet way to Harry, Percy and Ginny.

Ron blushed as he glanced at Hermione, who was too, red in the face; they both recalled the delicious eggs they devoured earlier. "No mum, I ate this morning. I guess I nodded off again. What's the occasion of all the dancing? Not another Yule Ball is it?"

"Oh nothing much, just celebrating us being alive after a bloody war!" Ginny said sarcastically. Harry chuckled and brought her in for a hug.

"Really?" Ron said grinning. "Alright, pass the firewhisky!"

Mrs. Weasley gave Ron a stern look of disapproval and his ears turned red. "Oh, sorry mum, er- let's just continue dancing then!"

George and Percy sniggered, but no one complained about the dancing and they dove right into it. Harry grabbed Ginny closely and they began dancing in a romantic way. Ron walked on over and sat on the arm of the couch that Hermione was seated on, and cleared his throat. "Why aren't you dancing?"

"Oh, I prefer watching." She said quietly.

Ron chuckled, "You prefer watching? You always participate, not sit back and watch, c'mon then." He got up and stood in front of Hermione. He gestured his hand to her and gave her his famous half smile that all the Gryffindor girls recognized.

Hermione hesitated, she knew if she took his hand and danced with him then the awkwardness would be revealed to the pair of them. But, she couldn't resist the adorable half smile Ron always seemed to give her. She blushed and whispered, "Alright, just one dance."

Ron beamed, "That's fine with me!" She took Ron's hand and he pulled her closer. Ginny and Harry were slow dancing and caught sight of Ron and Hermione.

"My stupid brother can be sweet at times." Ginny whispered into Harry's ear.

"Hey Ron's not that bad, you know the first time they kissed was when he was being protective over the house elves?" Harry whispered back.

"Yeah I know, Hermione told me. He always says the right things at the wrong time." She laughed.

Harry chuckled; boy did he know that to be true. He had to shout at the two of them to grab their attention away from their passionate kiss in the midst of the battle. Harry smiled, he was happy for his two best friends, he knew their connection since the third year before them, and he was glad they finally caught up to what they were feeling. He was never worried for how they would turn out to be, sure, they bickered _constantly _but in the end they always knew what was important and that it was their relationship. And for him, he had Ginny. Ginevra Molly Weasley, his best friend's sister, the girl he hadn't acknowledged for several years. She was always just another Gryffindor to him and he didn't mean for it to be like, he just didn't notice her. Until sixth year, he recognized her. Her independence, her beautiful long fire red hair, her sassiness, and her damn good abilities to be a chaser attracted him. He couldn't believe he hadn't noticed her before, and he was glad he begun to soon enough before he lost her. She was the thing that he most longed for in his life. That pain that ached inside of him, in which he wished he could find someone to fill it, was Ginny. She was the one who kept him going. She was the one who made him feel to be more than just the Chosen one. To her, he was just Harry, and that was fine with him. He stared into Ginny's brown eyes, and Harry knew Ginny could feel his rapid heartbeat; her hand was placed on top of his chest.

"What's wrong Harry? Your heart's about to jump out of your chest!" Ginny asked shocked.

"I know," he said fidgeting with his glasses, "It's your fault." He said.

Ginny bit her lip and blushed, "Harry. . ."

"Speaking of doing things at the right time, it's a good time to kiss you, right?" Harry asked sheepishly.

"It's always a good time." Ginny whispered. She took full control and yanked Harry in, covering her mouth onto his. Harry responded immediately caressing her lips softer than she could imagine. It felt as though they had silenced the world out, well not exactly-

"That's really gross." George whispered loudly to Percy, knowing Harry and Ginny could hear them. They continued expressing their affection. Hermione and Ron weren't dancing yet; they stood by each other in silence, catching quick glimpses of each other. Resting his eyes from Hermione's beauty, he took a look up and saw Ginny and Harry. He sighed in defeat and groaned quietly. Hermione overheard the soft groan and asked,

"What's wrong?"

Ron pointed to Harry and Ginny and Hermione smiled. "That's lovely, they deserve that."

Ron nodded slowly, "Yeah, I suppose."

Hermione looked at Ron incredulously. She couldn't believe Ron hadn't stormed off to break them apart yet. Her shocked face turned into a smile with pride. Hermione grabbed Ron's hand to get his attention. Ron's head turned and he met Hermione's eyes. "Hermione?"

"Yeah Ron?"

"Will you please dance with me?"

Slowly, Hermione's complexion in her cheeks began to change to a rosy scarlet color, and she nervously smiled and bit her lip. She nodded, unable to get out a word. Ron gave her his famous lob sided grin and he gently grabbed her waist. He pulled her towards him and slowly wrapped his arms around her waist. Hermione nervously eased into the transition and slid her arms around Ron's neck and wrapped them. Hermione looked into Ron's eyes and saw him staring right back at her.

"You know," Ron spoke, "I've wanted to dance with you for a long time." He confessed.

"You have?" Hermione asked surprised.

Ron nodded and showed his toothy grin, "When I saw you in that periwinkle blue dress-"

Hermione gaped, "You remember?" she raised her hands covering her mouth.

"Of course I do! You looked amazing!"

Hermione found that absolutely adorable, and she squealed. "Ron!"

"Hermione!" he repeated her tone of voice. "Let me finish alright?"

"Sorry!" Hermione giggled as she hit his shoulder lightly for imitating her.

"As I was saying, when I saw you, I desperately wanted to ask you for a dance, but I saw you with Krum, and it killed me." Ron paused to take a breath; he was definitely not going to tear up in front of Hermione. "It did, and if only I had asked you before him to the ball, then it would've been me you were dancing with. But now, look! I'm dancing with Hermione Granger, and it's beyond reality! Well, almost dancing with."

Hermione also did not want to tear up in front of Ron, but it happened. She had been extremely sensitive with everything going on, and Ron opened the gates back up with his words. She could feel her eyes filling up with tears, and feel it dripping down her cheeks. Ron frowned; it hurt him whenever he saw Hermione to be emotional. He raised his hands and brushed off her tears gently with his thumb. He knew all he could do at that moment, was pull her in for a tightening hug, and that's exactly what he did. He stroked her hair and let her cry into his shoulder. Hermione gripped Ron's shirt near his chest. Everyone in the room stopped their dancing to see what was happening. Ginny made a sudden movement to go see what happened but Ron looked up and mouthed, "I got it." He whispered into Hermione's ear, "Let's go upstairs, we'll calm down first and then be back." Hermione's body shook and Ron took that as a sign of agreement. He led her up the stairs and into his room. He sat her down on his bed and he pulled up a chair for himself.

"What're you doing?" Hermione whispered through her soft cries.

"Uh taking a seat?" Ron asked confused.

Hermione patted the bed, "Don't be ridiculous sit here."

Ron didn't deny the request and sat near her. He asked, "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine, I wasn't crying because I'm upset, I was crying because it so sweet. Ron, if you had asked me way sooner of course I would've went with you! It was just- the way you asked me was-"

"Awful, idiotic, an arse of a request?"

"Let's just say it wasn't the best." Hermione laughed and Ron joined in. He reached for her hand and pulled her off the bed.

"Hermione, will you now _please _dance with me now?"

"Of course." Hermione whispered. Ron pulled Hermione in and again she rested her head on his shoulder. She closed her eyes and let the moment sink it. Ron thought back to his fourth year, when he watched Hermione dance with Krum. She was beautiful, and Ron wanted nothing more than to have a dance with her, hold her waist and kiss her rosy cheeks. Now, he had his moment, and he was going to make the best of it. Hermione looked down at their feet and was surprised any incidents hadn't occurred. Ron caught her looking down and laughed.

"You're shocked I haven't stepped on your feet yet huh?"

Hermione said quickly, "What? No no no, I was just, checking my shoes."

He chuckled, "You're a terrible liar! I had Mum teach me a week ago, I picked it up pretty fast actually, and she was quite surprised. I wanted to learn, in case I ever snuck in a dance with you, then I'd be prepared."

Hermione felt as though she couldn't breathe, that her heart at stopped because of how overwhelmed it felt. Ron's words managed to stop her heart from fully functioning. She was ridiculously, incredibly, and infatuatedly in love with Ron. She wanted nothing more for to say it again and again and again to him. She wanted him to be able to say it back also, but she was fine if he wasn't ready, she couldn't blame him, but she just wished he felt the same way as she did. In some ways, she already knew how he felt for her; she just hoped one day he'd be able to say it out loud. Ron pulled away and Hermione raised her eyebrow. Ron shook nervously and Hermione touched his arm to calm him down.

"Ron?" she asked concern.

Ron shook his head notifying her that he was okay, and grinned. His hand slid from her waist all the way to her neck. His fingers tingled at the touch of her. Their noses touched, and soon their foreheads too. With their breaths being the only thing they could hear, Ron decided to silence her by pressing his lips onto hers. Hermione's lips were filled with warmth and pureness. Ron's kissing was slow, sweet and passionate. Hermione wrapped her arms around Ron's neck then slowly her hands rose up to be tangled in Ron's soft red hair. They broke apart with their eyes shut tight. Hermione and Ron opened their eyes, seeing the others at the same time. Ron grinned and cupped her face and softly spoke,

"You're beautiful Hermione Granger."

Hermione trembled at the kind words Ron said.

They wasted no time to lean in for another kiss.

**** I know what you're thinking, why didn't he say I love you? Well, you'll find out in a few chapters, or less, I haven't quite decided yet. Enjoy! Leave some reviews, lovelies. **


	5. Chapter 5

5 hours had passed since Ron and Hermione's little rendezvous in his room. Ron had managed to linger the moment for a couple of minutes, but Hermione being the cautious girl she is, insisted they end their snogging session before anyone could walk in on them. Ron whined and complained until he saw Hermione's stern look. He gave up on his pleading, and the two descended back downstairs to join the rest of the group. During the hours, Harry, Ginny, Hermione and Ron filled their time doing absolutely nothing. They were currently scattered around the living room. Harry and Ron were laying on the carpet, counting all the random specks of black on the ceiling, Ginny was sitting near the fireplace burning folders filled with parchments of homework from Hogwarts, and Hermione was sitting on the couch reading The Tales of Beedle the Bard. All were dying to do something to pass time (except Hermione of course), hoping something exciting would come along. Ron decided to break the silence. He groaned loudly and shouted, "Bloody hell, somebody do something!"

Hermione lowered her book and glared at Ron, "Don't swear Ron!" she snapped.

"Sorry." Ron mumbled as he ran his fingers through his heated hair.

Harry laughed at how bossy Hermione could still be to Ron, even as her girlfriend. Harry left his lazy position and got up to walk towards Ginny. "What are you burning?" Ginny turned around to see Harry resting his chin on her shoulder, then kissing her cheek.

She smiled, "Oh, just some papers I had from our _really_ adventurous year at Hogwarts." Harry chuckled then scanned the area, a parchment caught his eye. He picked up a paper that had customized symbols and signs.

"What's this for?" he said showing Ginny.

"Oh that's from DA; it's just a list of codes we all decided on together."

"Codes?"

Ginny nodded, "You see that one?" she pointed at the symbol of a white snowy owl. "See, that's the code for you, like in case you ever showed up."

"Really?" Harry asked bewildered. "That's brilliant."

"Yeah, exactly what I said! It was Luna's idea. She even drew the drawings."

"Full of wonders Luna is. How does it work?" Harry replied.

"Well, each of these has a certain password that comes along with it. Like, that one, the picture of the crow, that's a warning sign for the Carrows. A person would just tap their wand on it and whisper the password, and eventually the symbol will glow onto everyone else's parchment. It helps everyone to avoid one of the Carrows when they're approaching. The password for it is malthram. Only a few people in DA know all of the passwords though, for security purposes, and security purposes meaning preventing any gits with big mouths." Harry gave a whoop of laughter. "Everyone knows the essential passwords though, for the owl, the Carrows, and a few others."

Harry's face was filled with awestruck as he examined the paper thoroughly. "Have I mentioned this is brilliant? I don't understand why you're burning it."

Ginny brushed her thumb against Harry's chin. "Well, it's better not to keep the painful memories."

He nodded sadly. "You're right." He tossed the parchment into the fireplace, and placed his arm around Ginny, together watching the sparks of the fire and their past burn away.

At that moment Ron stood up awfully quickly and as he began to open his mouth, he stumbled on his own two feet. He fell behind onto where Hermione sat. Hermione dropped her book and looked at Ron with confusion. Ron looked up into her beautiful brown eyes and smiled. "Head rush."

Hermione returned his smile and said, "You're insane."

"You just realized?" he joked. "You know Hermione; I think I hurt myself in that little dance."

"Oh did you now?" Hermione teased.

Ron nodded, smirked then began to pout. Hermione rolled her eyes secretly enjoying Ron's playfulness, then bent down to kiss Ron's forehead. Ron beamed, and softly spoke his joy, "All better, thanks." He traced the feeling on his forehead with his finger.

"No problem at all." She replied happily.

Ron's ears turned red, shaking it off, he got up off the couch and clapped his hands together. "Alright everyone, let's go out near the Orchard."

"The Orchard? Why?" Ginny asked.

"Well you want to stay in this stuffy room all day? Be my guest!"

Ginny growled and mumbled, "No, that's not what I want." Harry chuckled then kissed Ginny on the head.

"Actually, that's not a bad idea." he commented. "Let's go, we can play Quidditch." Ginny's and Ron's face brightened.

"Really?" they said simultaneously.

"Why not?" Harry grinned.

Hermione sighed. She was hoping they could have done a different activity, something in which she could too enjoy, but seeing the happiness filling Ron's face, she agreed to the idea. It wasn't that she hated Quidditch, she enjoyed watching and cheering on Gryffindor during the matches, it was just that she was awful in the playing of it. "We should invite George and Percy" She suggested.

Ron and Ginny both burst in laughter, almost collapsing. Their laughs differed completely, Ginny, having a repetitious chuckle, and Ron having a great roar of a lion. The one thing the two had in common was how loud they could be. Ginny moved to chuckle into Harry's neck. Ron hit the couch roaring with laughter.

"Was it something I said?" Hermione asked with a questionable look on her face. Harry mouthed, "No clue," patting Ginny's hair as she continued to laugh.

Ron managed to get a hold of himself and speak. "It's just; can you imagine Percy playing Quidditch?" Ron said trying to choke back his laughter.

Hermione's tense face turned into her trying her hardest not to laugh. Hermione shook her head and giggled, she understood how quite silly it'd be to see Head boy, Percy Weasley playing Quidditch. Ginny's laughing died down and she wiped away a few tears.

"Besides, we have four players right here, five would just irritate me." Ginny said.

"Four? Oh no, no, no, I'm not playing!" Hermione said shrilly.

"Hermione come on! This is our first Qudditch game with everything that was going on! Please?" Ron pleaded.

Hermione paused to think about her options. "Fine, only if we get to do what I'd like after!"

Ron walked over and lifted Hermione with a bear hug. "You're the best!" Hermione shrieked as Ron grabbed her and giggled. Ron put her down and he gave her a soft kiss on the lips. Hermione blushed furiously and slapped Ron's shoulder lightly. Ginny rolled her eyes and said,

"C'mon let's go!"

"Please." Harry said miserably. Ron and Hermione turned to see Harry covering his eyes.

***

"I change my mind; I don't want to do this!" Hermione shouted as the broom lifted her up into the air.

"Too late!" Ginny shouted from the other side of the Orchard.

Ron planted his feet then kicked off the ground into the air, and quickly flew near the spot where Hermione was. "Hermione, it'll be fine, I won't let anything happen, promise!"

"Ron, I really don't want to do this." Hermione said in a rushed tone.

Ron gave her a half smile and nodded. He held onto Hermione's broomstick and lowered the two of them down. The color in Hermione's face returned to her as she felt the earthly ground. "Thank you for understanding." She whispered as she kissed Ron's cheek. Ron pulled Hermione into another hug and said,

"Of course, they can play one on one anyway." Ron shrugged.

"Ron! You can still play, I just don't want to!"

"No way, you know how bored I'd be without you in the air with me?"

Hermione beamed and grabbed Ron's face for a kiss. Ron kissed back with eagerness and looked satisfied when they broke apart. "What was that for?" he asked.

"For being you." Hermione said softly, giving him another kiss.

"OI!" Harry shouted, causing them to jump. "Coming to play or to snog?"

"We're going to snog! Hermione doesn't want to play, so I'll stay down here, besides, I always wanted front row seats to Harry Potter verses Ginny Weasley!" he called.

Harry laughed, "Alright!" He flew back and told the adjustment of their game to Ginny, and she groaned loudly enough for Ron and Hermione to hear.

Ron pulled his wand out and said, "Accio blanket!" The blanket had come flying out attacking Ron in the stomach. With a sudden grunt, Ron fell onto the ground. Hermione covered her mouth, stopping herself from smirking. He cursed quietly then unrolled the blanket unto the ground for them to sit on. "Here Hermione, sit."

"Why thank you." Hermione said. The two watched Harry and Ginny verse each other competitively, each person making a goal in each other's. They had to be a little bit of each position, the rules and point of the game changing drastically. In the end they tied with 5 to 5. They flew down next to Hermione and Ron, and Harry smirked.

"I let her win."

Ginny smacked his chest, "You did not! You just lacked the skill!"

"What!" Harry asked with a scoff. "I'm just rusty from hunting horcruxes! With just a bit of training I'll be back to my normal seeker self."

"It's in your blood; you should be good either way!"

"I am good!"

"Well you didn't show it today!" Ginny said sassily.

Harry laughed and picked up Ginny. He threw her over his shoulder and walked away leaving Hermione and Ron in peace. As they left, Ron and Hermione could still hear Ginny's shouts of commanding Harry to let her down. They both howled with laughter then stopped immediately as they caught each other's eyes. Ron brushed a hair out of Hermione's face, and said. "Hermione, even if you're god awful at Quidditch, you'll always be first in my team."

Hermione bit her lip in happiness. "Oh Ron." She said softly. Ron leaned while shutting his eyes; Hermione did the same, waiting for Ron's lips to collide with hers. Their lips touched and the spark hit them both. Hermione slid her hand up to Ron's hair, grabbing it, and her other hand on Ron's chest. Ron's hands were on Hermione's back, tracing her spine. The kiss deepened and Hermione was the first one to slip her tongue into Ron's mouth. Ron shivered at the sudden change and gave Hermione's bottom lip a quick bite. They broke apart and Hermione's heart was beating faster than ever.

****Sorry for the late update! Hope you enjoy! Leave some reviews my lovely readers, it really does motivate me! Leave me any ideas or what you'd like to see soon!**


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